The Philadelphia 76ers enter an important offseason as the clock is ticking for President of Basketball Operations Daryl Morey to deliver a championship to the City of Brotherly Love.
The Sixers are armed with the cap space and tradeable assets needed to bring in another big piece next to Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey. Philadelphia has the star duo foundation, but now they need the pieces to fit.
They have the No. 16 pick in the 2024 NBA draft, and one has to wonder whether Morey will keep the pick. If the Sixers make the selection, they could look into a big man out of Indiana.
A mock draft by Bleacher Report has the Sixers selecting Indiana’s Kel’el Ware:
Kel’el Ware measured well at the NBA combine, even showing a standing reach that was 2.5 inches longer than potential No. 1 overall pick’s Alex Sarr. He was also down 12 pounds from Indiana’s listing. For Ware to maximize his draft stock, he’s going to have to convince teams to buy into his three-point range.
Ware still has a very high skill level for a center who’s above average athletically and nearly 7’0″ in socks. And the big increase in scoring production helped validate the effectiveness of his tools, movement and shotmaking.
Ware has been compared to Milwaukee Bucks center Brook Lopez. Ware’s ability to block shots at a high rate while improving his offensive game makes him an intriguing prospect when the time comes around in June.
The Sixers could move on from Paul Reed in the offseason due to his contract being non-guaranteed for the 2024-25 season, so somebody like Ware would make sense.
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